5 answers
Sheldon
Student
Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
1
Question
Updated
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Is sports management a good career option?
I am 17 and am really interested in sports so is it actually possible to make a career out of it?
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5 answers
Joseph Kunec
Program Manager
22
Answers
Round Hill, Virginia
Updated
Joseph’s Answer
Hi Sheldon,
My son looked at this also as he is very interested in the sports background. To be in sports management, I am unsure if you're talking medicine, or team (business) management. So this will be a broad answer, but wanted to give you something to look at. As I tell everyone, do your research to determine what exactly in this field you want to do, there are a couple different paths you can go. The good news about sports teams is if you live anywhere near one, you can more than likely find some volunteer work to do with your local team and that can get you familiar with the career field. My son wanted initially to do sports medicine, he then decided that was too much schooling for him and redirected to sports analyst. We have a local college baseball team he volunteers for handling score keeping, he does a podcast and some broadcasting for them on social media. Aside from that he has created a youtube channel where he gives professional sports pics and also a podcast by the same name where he does news and updates for his favorite teams opposite a good friend of his who does the counter point for the opposing local team in the same division. When reaching out to colleges and asking for tips, these were all things they mentioned to him to do and he was already doing them, so he was ahead of the curve. He will be taking journalism in the fall of 2023. Then there is the front office aspect also, this is a business like no other. Taking business courses and look again at your favorite team, how did the people in the positions you would like to fill get there? Look them up online, where did they go to school?, what did they study? My favorite football team, the GM and head of operations went to school to be a lawyer and landed his job in the organization 23 years ago and just kept climbing the corporate ladder. Just keep in mind with sports, if you're not winning, someone has to take the blame and it's not going to be the owner... Good luck!
My son looked at this also as he is very interested in the sports background. To be in sports management, I am unsure if you're talking medicine, or team (business) management. So this will be a broad answer, but wanted to give you something to look at. As I tell everyone, do your research to determine what exactly in this field you want to do, there are a couple different paths you can go. The good news about sports teams is if you live anywhere near one, you can more than likely find some volunteer work to do with your local team and that can get you familiar with the career field. My son wanted initially to do sports medicine, he then decided that was too much schooling for him and redirected to sports analyst. We have a local college baseball team he volunteers for handling score keeping, he does a podcast and some broadcasting for them on social media. Aside from that he has created a youtube channel where he gives professional sports pics and also a podcast by the same name where he does news and updates for his favorite teams opposite a good friend of his who does the counter point for the opposing local team in the same division. When reaching out to colleges and asking for tips, these were all things they mentioned to him to do and he was already doing them, so he was ahead of the curve. He will be taking journalism in the fall of 2023. Then there is the front office aspect also, this is a business like no other. Taking business courses and look again at your favorite team, how did the people in the positions you would like to fill get there? Look them up online, where did they go to school?, what did they study? My favorite football team, the GM and head of operations went to school to be a lawyer and landed his job in the organization 23 years ago and just kept climbing the corporate ladder. Just keep in mind with sports, if you're not winning, someone has to take the blame and it's not going to be the owner... Good luck!
I am really grateful you took the time to answer this question.
Sheldon
Andrew Rydzewski
HR Data Analyst
24
Answers
Collegeville, Pennsylvania
Updated
Andrew’s Answer
Hi Sheldon -
I would encourage you to follow your interests - first and foremost. If you are interested in sports management, that is wonderful. This will make the process of obtaining key skills, networking with people in the field and achieving learning goals so much more engaging. You will find that the skills, networking and accomplishments from sports management will benefit you in that role, but also prepare you for other opportunities you may discover later in life or your career. I was an accounting manager for a decade and my team had only one accounting student. The rest of my team was a marine biologist (an expert in auditing), an economist (an expert in external interest rate analysis) and empty-nester mother (who made sure everything got done on time). Be good at what you like doing and bring that goodness to everything you do!
Talk to someone in the field today and tell them about your interest!
I would encourage you to follow your interests - first and foremost. If you are interested in sports management, that is wonderful. This will make the process of obtaining key skills, networking with people in the field and achieving learning goals so much more engaging. You will find that the skills, networking and accomplishments from sports management will benefit you in that role, but also prepare you for other opportunities you may discover later in life or your career. I was an accounting manager for a decade and my team had only one accounting student. The rest of my team was a marine biologist (an expert in auditing), an economist (an expert in external interest rate analysis) and empty-nester mother (who made sure everything got done on time). Be good at what you like doing and bring that goodness to everything you do!
Talk to someone in the field today and tell them about your interest!
Thanks, can't wait to put this advice into action!
Sheldon
Marti (Martha) Lawrence-Hawley
Corporate Systems Management
2
Answers
Orlando, Florida
Updated
Marti (Martha)’s Answer
Hi, Sheldon - if you're interested in college sports management programs, there are good ones in many states. Several are relatively affordable, and some even offer assistance connecting students with internships and jobs. I've known several people who have gone through programs like these, and had a variety of job options, like managing a golf course, managing sports teams for high schools, working at sports networks like ESPN, really interesting careers.
You might also be able to look on job boards like Indeed, and see if a team or a school might offer jobs without a degree, and apply directly, or volunteer to get some experience, as suggested above.
Search google for "sports management jobs" or "sports management schools" or "sports management volunteer", for general research on this, or add your local city and state to the searches, to see what's available near you.
You can look online at sport management schools like these to see what they offer, here are some of the "big" ones: copy this link to see the whole article on this: https://collegegazette.com/best-colleges-for-sports-management/
US News Sports Management rankings
The 10 Best Colleges for Sports Management
Florida State University (Tallahassee, FL)
Indiana University (Bloomington, IN)
Ohio State University (Columbus, OH)
Temple University (Philadelphia, PA)
Syracuse University (Syracuse, NY)
Rice University (Houston, TX)
University of Miami (Coral Gables, FL)
You might also be able to look on job boards like Indeed, and see if a team or a school might offer jobs without a degree, and apply directly, or volunteer to get some experience, as suggested above.
Search google for "sports management jobs" or "sports management schools" or "sports management volunteer", for general research on this, or add your local city and state to the searches, to see what's available near you.
You can look online at sport management schools like these to see what they offer, here are some of the "big" ones: copy this link to see the whole article on this: https://collegegazette.com/best-colleges-for-sports-management/
US News Sports Management rankings
The 10 Best Colleges for Sports Management
Florida State University (Tallahassee, FL)
Indiana University (Bloomington, IN)
Ohio State University (Columbus, OH)
Temple University (Philadelphia, PA)
Syracuse University (Syracuse, NY)
Rice University (Houston, TX)
University of Miami (Coral Gables, FL)
Your advice was so helpful!
Sheldon
Jason Wilson
TA
3
Answers
Atlanta, Georgia
Updated
Jason’s Answer
Hello Sheldon - This is a great question and I will keep it short. I recommend supporting a local sports team by volunteering and / or applying to open coaching assistant roles. Sports management can be a fun career. I believe anything you do is really driven by passion.
Thank you, Jason!
Sheldon
Praveenaa G
DevOps Engineer
8
Answers
Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Updated
Praveenaa’s Answer
Hi Sheldon,
Interesting.
Yep Sports as an career is good option.
Because every college has students of 10% who are opted from Sports quota, and choosing a career as Sports
You will have many options
1. You can coach students who are studying in schools and colleges
2. You can run your own sports academy
3. If you are trying for any Govt. jobs if you have an sports background it is an additional advantage for you.
4. You can be always fit and healthy.
Interesting.
Yep Sports as an career is good option.
Because every college has students of 10% who are opted from Sports quota, and choosing a career as Sports
You will have many options
1. You can coach students who are studying in schools and colleges
2. You can run your own sports academy
3. If you are trying for any Govt. jobs if you have an sports background it is an additional advantage for you.
4. You can be always fit and healthy.
Thanks for the help.
Sheldon